The Augurs

[Sextus Roscius]

"Being and Augur is easy work. Lightning on the left, good, lightning on the right, bad. All you have to do is turn around and you give the required answer."

 

I can't remember where I read this, but it brought a thought to my mind, were the Augurs and other preists/preistess just lieing in order to have the person do what was best, rather than what the gods dictated. After all, a common person seeking an answer would have no idea what certain things mean, how to figure out what they mean, or even what something was often times and they wouldn't know if the priest was lieing or telling what they thought their god wanted them to do.

 

A prime example of this, is the omen boc created by Heran of Alexandria. It looked like a small temple with a gold or copper bird sitting on top and a turnable wheel on one side. The answer-seeker would ask his question, turn the wheel, and if the bird sang the gods replyed positively, if not, it was a negative response. The Omen box was designed so that when some one asked a question to the priest, he would ready the omen box for the answer to the question he though apropriate by removing or inserting a cog into a slot, then would allow the answer-seeker to turn the wheel.

 

So I ask you if you beleive the Augurs and other priests told the answer-seeker what was best in their opinion, or did they honestly consult the gods?

[FLavius Valerius Constantinus]

It best to consult the gods, you wouldn't want to get severly punished or killed if you told an emperor things he didn't want to hear. Funny it reminds of how the priest of Amon tricked Alexander into believing what he already believed, that he was the son of Zeus. At the temple of Zeus, Alexander wanted to ask Zeus three questions:

1) Would he conquer the world?

2) Did all those responsibles or connected to his father's death all died?

3) Was he the son of Zeus?

And the answer to all three he got was YES from Zeus. But what Alexander did not know was that the Priest of Amon was in another small room pretending to be Zeus and answered all of Alexander's questions from the room to Alexander through the thin walls.

The irony, it sounds like the Wizard of Oz.

[Lost_Warrior]

I think it depended on 1) the priest and 2) the circumstance. Also remember that many of these signs were so common that...I wonder how they didn't get mixed signals all of the time? How many were actual "signs" and how many coincidence? My vote is that most all of them were coincidence.

[Germanicus]

A good example would be the Consulship of Julius and Caesar. Bibulus was absent for the most part - off sighting bad omens in an attempt to block Caesars legislation.

[Pantagathus]

So I ask you if you beleive the Augurs and other priests told the answer-seeker what was best in their opinion, or did they honestly consult the gods?

 

Sextus,

 

Except for the Oracle at Delphi (which seems to have had some geo-chemical assistance) I would say that in general, they were giving answers & advice based on their sagacious opinions. Does that mean they were lying & cheating? Not necessarily.

 

More than likely they were confident (through their training) that they were in fact acting on behalf of the Gods.

 

Though I agree that they usally used gimicks to wow their 'customers'...

 

I've read in a few places that even the Druid priests made use of what we would consider parlor tricks. Particularly, one priest would find out what the problem was from the 'customer' and then non-verbally communicate to the 'Oracle' priest (or what have you) via Ogahm signs using their shin as the writing stem line (kind of like how catchers & pitchers communicate). That way, the Oracle priest knew the problem and the solution before the customer even told them.

[Favonius Cornelius]

I'd like to echo Pantagathus' statement there. The very fact that these people were ordained as a priest of a given function, accompanied with all the religious protocol and sacrifice, made them wholly a living part of the religion. The gods work in mysterious ways, why not then through the gods' earthly representative?

[Sextus Roscius]

So I ask you if you beleive the Augurs and other priests told the answer-seeker what was best in their opinion, or did they honestly consult the gods?

 

Sextus,

 

Except for the Oracle at Delphi (which seems to have had some geo-chemical assistance) I would say that in general, they were giving answers & advice based on their sagacious opinions. Does that mean they were lying & cheating? Not necessarily.

 

More than likely they were confident (through their training) that they were in fact acting on behalf of the Gods.

 

Though I agree that they usally used gimicks to wow their 'customers'...

 

I've read in a few places that even the Druid priests made use of what we would consider parlor tricks. Particularly, one priest would find out what the problem was from the 'customer' and then non-verbally communicate to the 'Oracle' priest (or what have you) via Ogahm signs using their shin as the writing stem line (kind of like how catchers & pitchers communicate). That way, the Oracle priest knew the problem and the solution before the customer even told them.

 

Point well maid Pantagathus. Perhaps it was a mixture rather than a majority and minority. The Idea that they were a speaking voice for the gods would allow them to tell their decision to the person while still beleiving that the gods were deciding it.

[Lost_Warrior]

They acted sort of like modern priests do I guess...as spiritual advisors. People go to a priest to seek advice just like they did in ancient times. The difference is that most priests nowadays don't claim to speak to the Gods...they use what they've been taught to give the advice that they feel best follows the "will of God".